Stoneburners - Chapter Champion (Dueling Master) WiP Model

[Captain Semper]

I agree with Elmo. The vials are out of place on a SM - they may look fine on a bike but they are just not integrate well on the infantry mini.

 

On halberd pose, call me Mr. boring but I vote for the original one.

[Dragon Claw]

I like the changes.

 

For the apothecary I agree if you can shave off the parts sticking out on the lower backpack and have it sitting flush it'll look a lot better.

 

As for the halberdier I think it already looks a lot better, as someone mentioned it does slightly look like he's cheering or saluting which isn't exactly a bad thing but if you are looking for a resting pose some little changes might be able to help reinforce that idea. I think if you dropped the angle of the arm very slightly and bent the wrist slightly more towards the shoulder then you might be able to get it close to resting on the pauldron, although it looks like the backpack might cause some clearance issues.

 

Just to throw another idea into the pot to give you some alternatives there's also this sort of pose: http://fc05.deviantart.net/fs42/f/2009/135/1/0/Grey_Knights_Manip_by_nigellus.jpg

 

Either way whichever option you choose I can't wait to see them painted as I'm sure they'll look awesome.

[Dark Rage]

Like the changes to the halberd but maybe change the position of the head to have his facing the same way the halberd is leaned towards. The vials look ok in the position but have you tried to position them under the backpack and attached to the belt.

 

DR

[facmanpob]

I thought about having a marine carry the vials, using the handle at one end, as if he'd been seconded by the Apothecary after a particularly gruesome battle.....

[Bryan Blaire]

I'd either fold a bit more the halberd arm (maybe heating a cutter and pressing it against the inside of the elbow) or go for a more "throwing" pose.

As for the sculpting, you can use the feathers for hair and just do mounth/eyes...

Break it down to "circles"...

Hope it helps and really loking forward

Yeah, sadly the bits for Space Marines don't actually always reflect how a normal human would stand. That said, I'm only using bits already with the right conformations. Perhaps you will enjoy the final pose I've gotten below.

Nah, the sculpting of a lion head is definitely not happening. Besides, none of my guys use any lions at all, they are winged-sword-of-Death based, and I need to paint that on the round portion of the pad.

I like the new halberd pose, its almost a joyous thrust into the air to celebrate a victory....

Well, it was supposed to be resting with the spike against the backpack.

Ahhh - I have not been on your thread for what seems like ages and there has been no change - it is all fantastic!

My own personal opinion, and take with a large pinch of salt, is

the vial pack on the back of the Apothecary does not really work for me as it sticks out too far.

If you are trying for the Halbard bearer viewing the carnage then maybe go for the end of the halbard on the ground near his right foot so he looks like he is resting but thi scould be a bit boring.

Whatever you choose to do I'm sure it will look great though

I'm actually agreeing about the additional vial pack. It just really isn't working for me either. It was an idea, but I think instead just having a couple of vial packs on his belt will work just fine. After all, like CPT Semper said, this guy may already be a little over-blinged anyway.

I agree with Elmo. The vials are out of place on a SM - they may look fine on a bike but they are just not integrate well on the infantry mini.

On halberd pose, call me Mr. boring but I vote for the original one.

Check out the new idea below.

I like the changes.

For the apothecary I agree if you can shave off the parts sticking out on the lower backpack and have it sitting flush it'll look a lot better.

As for the halberdier I think it already looks a lot better, as someone mentioned it does slightly look like he's cheering or saluting which isn't exactly a bad thing but if you are looking for a resting pose some little changes might be able to help reinforce that idea. I think if you dropped the angle of the arm very slightly and bent the wrist slightly more towards the shoulder then you might be able to get it close to resting on the pauldron, although it looks like the backpack might cause some clearance issues.

Just to throw another idea into the pot to give you some alternatives there's also this sort of pose: http://fc05.deviantart.net/fs42/f/2009/135/1/0/Grey_Knights_Manip_by_nigellus.jpg

Either way whichever option you choose I can't wait to see them painted as I'm sure they'll look awesome.

I think the Apothecary will just have to do with smaller vial packs on the belt.

I would love to do something like that image, however, I'm having a very hard time finding a straight arm like that with the actual thrown back angle attaching at the shoulder in that fashion as a bit. If you happen to know a kit that has something like that, I may take a look at tracking it down.

Yeah, the backpack was not allowing it to rest against the shoulder. I figured angled in and resting across the top of the backpack would actually look as good, but instead, it seems to make him look like he's cheering.

Like the changes to the halberd but maybe change the position of the head to have his facing the same way the halberd is leaned towards. The vials look ok in the position but have you tried to position them under the backpack and attached to the belt.

DR

That sounds like a good idea for the head, may give that a shot too. Unfortunately, tonight, he didn't want to cooperate for pictures after the images below, so he ended up with his arms both ripped off his shoulders and his hands separated at the wrists with a "Well, that's how you are staying tonight then."

I thought about having a marine carry the vials, using the handle at one end, as if he'd been seconded by the Apothecary after a particularly gruesome battle.....

I had actually originally thought about having the Apothecary carrying around the large pack in his right hand, but I couldn't find a good closed fist right hand bit that I could have used, and I'm not sure that thin wire frame is enough to really hold that whole pack up if it was used as a grip. I'm also not sure there's enough clearance for a power armored hand to fit through that narrow space to hold it.

Okay, I think this may be the last pose unless I get less frustrated with this guy. This is based on a suggestion given by firepower over in the WiP forum, so big props to him for the idea! I was going to use a more folded left arm to hold the shield, but I couldn't find one that really held it up in the position I wanted, so I felt it looked better with the shield extended out more:

So you'll have to use your imagination a little, flatten the blade of the halberd along the top of the spear (I'd cut the bit and rotate it 90 degrees, laid edge facing the camera location) and flip the fist, so that the back flat of the hand is facing the camera.

My only concern with this is that it looks a little too spear-like, which a halberd isn't really going to work like, especially with that rounded cutting blade that it has now. It should really be used in a more slashing attack. I'm not sure any of these poses really gives a vibe like that, and with the static torso, I'm not sure I can really get a good position to give that kind of indication.

Thoughts, C&C? (I think this will be the last set of pose WiPs, but I'd really like to hear thoughts on why the arm holding the sword on my Company Master might have looked funny)

Thanks again guys, I think you have all helped the figures look a lot better than I would have made them by myself!

[Cactus]

I think the problem with the captain's right arm is that you've used so much tack it's bulked out the shoulder joint. Makes him look like an orangutan. Or possibly it's just the camera angle because it looks fine in the second photo.

[Tanhausen]

Me likes the defensive pose with the halberd resting on the shield.

 

Your conversion is Tanhausen approved!

[JJD]

I love the pose. You've got a lot of movement in the mini especially considering the static torso.

[Dragon Claw]

New pose is great, I wouldn't worry too much about the realism factor when strictly speaking a halberd would always be used with two hands anyway, if a space marine wants to stab you with a curved edge you ARE going to be stabbed with a curved edge. Hell he could stab you with the flat end if he really fancied, also this is a power halberd right? In that case the power field will slice in any direction it so chooses the blade is simply there to hold the field in place, it could be shaped like a trout and it would still slice people up like bacon.

 

Finally if none of that works to convince you, you can always imagine he is banging the spear on the shield as if to say 'COME AND HAVE A GO IF YOU THINK YOU'RE HARD ENOUGH' but with stoicism and panache because he is a son of the lion after all.

 

As for the banner I would suggest you create a banner completely of your own design, we know you've got the freehand skills to pull it off and if its completely unique then you can use it as any banner you choose for any particular situation up until/if you decide to make another banner.

[facmanpob]

When all is said and done, remember Jon Snow's first rule of close combat...... "stick them with the pointy end!"

[Bryan Blaire]

I think the problem with the captain's right arm is that you've used so much tack it's bulked out the shoulder joint. Makes him look like an orangutan. Or possibly it's just the camera angle because it looks fine in the second photo.

Alright, thanks Cactus! I guess I will see how it looks when I finally paint it and glue it all together. I have my shooty Company Master in progress as well, so when I get him finished, I'll post him up too.

Me likes the defensive pose with the halberd resting on the shield.

Your conversion is Tanhausen approved!

Woot! Glad I got that stamp out of the way! :)

I love the pose. You've got a lot of movement in the mini especially considering the static torso.

Thanks! It came out well, just need to get to the cutting. I would really like to have a flowing "just got done cutting with it" style pose, but I don't think that will work out, I can't find any arms on the left side that are swept back and extended out and I can't use any of the right side ones without having to create a left handed storm shield.

New pose is great...

...As for the banner I would suggest you create a banner completely of your own design, we know you've got the freehand skills to pull it off and if its completely unique then you can use it as any banner you choose for any particular situation up until/if you decide to make another banner.

Thanks! Agreed on the realism, no worries here any more.

As far as the banner, I have an idea I've sketched out, but my sketch stinks and needs a LOT of refinement before I could even hope to actually try and paint it. One thing I'm not so sure on is whether to have the cut off head of an Akhundran beastie at the feet of Death or not.

When all is said and done, remember Jon Snow's first rule of close combat...... "stick them with the pointy end!"

:lol:

Very true, sir, very true!

Well, haven't really gotten any paint on anything lately, but I've started to get some new units assembled up for the Stoneburners' Strike Force Furael. First up is the first five members of Squad Raguel, 4th Company Assault Squad:

Been fun seeing what I could put together with the different kits I had sitting around. These guys have parts from the Vanguard Vets, Death Company, Sanguinary Guard, and Ravenwing Black Knights boxes, along with pads from all over.

The Sergeant will be in Deathwalker colors, with a member or two probably being Deathwalker Candidates, whenever I finally get around to painting them.

[Tanhausen]

(looks at the assault marines leaning forward and can't help thinking they're doing some conga or la cucharacha or whatever...)

[Dragon Claw]

Am I going crazy or did a whole load of posts from this thread end up taking a visit to Chamber 42?

[Bryan Blaire]

Sadly, you are not, when the board crashed, we lost stuff back to October 23rd and I just haven't had the chance to reload anything. Even stuff loaded into Galleries was lost back to then, so I'll need to reload the images. Now the question is whether I bother with the initial Belial Look-Alike Contest Participant that folks have already commented on, or just the newer version (that people probably still won't like completely). :yes: I think that only the newer more action posed version will be going up, along with the shooty command squad.

 

BTW, Tanhausen, thank you for always providing me with laughter at my stuff! :D :tu:

"~dun dun dun left leg kick~ Yeah! ~dun dun dun right leg kick~ Yeah! Now, line forward, let's kill some Xenos conga-style!"

[Bryan Blaire]

Alright, got some stuff back up to post.

"Shooty" Command Squad:

So, the Company Master is in the center once again, wearing his power field generator backpack.

And lost all the Deathwalker Company Master images as well. Not going to put all the ones up that people didn't like so much, and I have adjusted him some based on those comments. Here are a couple of shots of the original miniature composition:

The second image is just to show the leg detail, because I really like the Crux on the knee area and the Angel and Death logos, I think they fit really well with the Deathwalker imagery.

Now this is where he has gotten to:

I realize that the hand grip seems awkward, but I actually kinda like it. It shows a motion, I think, as if they Master has swept his sword up quickly in response to a threat in a modified hold to get into the action quickly, possibly even as he spins. Additionally, if you have trained in the use of the sai, the grip does actually have some similarity in this position to how you would grip the crossbar, especially in some transitional spins, and so it gives a somewhat interesting potential alternate usage style in the weapon, even though it is far longer than any true sai would ever be. However, improvisation during combat is quite common and I'm sure that when those that train for combat 20 hours plus a day their entire life after induction might come up with some very interesting methods of using weapons in a pinch. The wrist looks a little too crooked though, so I think I will give the wrist a couple of shaves with the knife blade to get it a little straighter. Also, the small elbow "shield" will be getting filled in (I don't think "steel" is an appropriate motto for the Deathwalkers) and have a winged sword (or flames) painted across it.

I blame the different cable types on battlefield repairs/adjustments/improvements. I'd like to do a similar elbow shield on the other arm, but I don't think I'm that good at this point. I blame the "against physics" alignment of the hanging keys as the Master moving so fast that they have swept up to align against the blade of the sword.

I also adjusted the helm so it looks more down the arm of the storm bolter.

Hope you guys like this positioning a little better!

[Captain Semper]

Call me Mr. Unadventurous but I still vote for an upward or forward pointing sword... :P A sword the size of this is much more than a parrying weapon imo...

[Tanhausen]

Bryan, as you say, I enjoy sharing some humor...specially with an artist that already knows I admire them :)

 

As for the terminator, the swordmaster, back to front slash looks quite odd on a terminator...maybe can you place it with the tip resting on the ground...as it was in the original pose! (really liked it).

[Bryan Blaire]

Call me Mr. Unadventurous but I still vote for an upward or forward pointing sword... :P A sword the size of this is much more than a parrying weapon imo...

Of course it is more than a parrying device, that's why I am imagining he just swept it up on the fly and is in the process of spinning it, but that doesn't mean he couldn't use it as a blocking device along his forearm. It gives a lot more sense of motion I think. Also, other than the few Belial's that have the new downward pointed sword, all those with swords have the outward or upward pointed sword, and I like that this guy is different. Besides, I'd lose this more uniquely DA one if I switched it, and there really is a dearth of good sword bits, especially for Terminators. Most are too squat and fat, or are long and thin in proportion to a normal Marine in PA. Or I'd have to go with another GK item, a sword, and I really don't like their cross-guards for their Terminator swords.

 

As for the terminator, the swordmaster, back to front slash looks quite odd on a terminator...maybe can you place it with the tip resting on the ground...as it was in the original pose! (really liked it).

Why does it look odd (other than the currently oddly bent wrist (which I hope to fix)?

 

The resting pose does seem a little too conflicting with the motion of the right side (model's left side) and that pose is already coming to be too common.

[Cactus]

I like the new sword-spinning pose. It's very original.

[Tanhausen]

Odd in the sense that I can't really picture a huge bulk such as a TDA handling a sword with spins and swirls and fancies and I take it from the pomel to rotate it to the... you get the idea ;)

 

That is a great pose for something like a DE Wych (lightning fast and so on), not for a superhuman behemoth.

 

When I pose my models, I try to think of the story of what has hapenned and how the model is reacting (hey, don't look at me that way... I'm sure you do that too!)

 

Why is he aiming with an undrilled storm bolter? (yep, pun intended :P)

 

Why is he carrying an unsheathed sword?

 

Boy, is it dangerous to let the imagination run free before a 3 day week end which includes a 20 team 4 players GT... :P

[elmo]

I like the sword to the rear pose. Its different and I have not seen it before.

 

 

I would go for it. Then again I have a habit of doing the unconventional :)

[Dark Rage]

I agree with Elmo the sword pose is a different step to the way that sword is commonly used and I think it looks really good.

 

Have you tried to change the helmets facing direction? I know I said something similar about changing the heads pose for the spear mini in your command squad but I find changing a helmets position can make the pose seem very different, this may collide with the storm bolter being in a raised aiming position so maybe adjust the bolter arm and change the heads position?

 

DR

[Bryan Blaire]

call me Mr. boring

Call me Mr. Unadventurous

I forgot to do this before: Okay, Mr. boring and Unadventurous! :D :p

 

Odd in the sense that I can't really picture a huge bulk such as a TDA handling a sword with spins and swirls and fancies and I take it from the pomel to rotate it to the... you get the idea ;)

 

That is a great pose for something like a DE Wych (lightning fast and so on), not for a superhuman behemoth.

 

When I pose my models, I try to think of the story of what has hapenned and how the model is reacting (hey, don't look at me that way... I'm sure you do that too!)

 

Why is he aiming with an undrilled storm bolter? (yep, pun intended :P)

 

Why is he carrying an unsheathed sword?

 

Boy, is it dangerous to let the imagination run free before a 3 day week end which includes a 20 team 4 players GT... :P

LOL

 

I think where we disagree is on the capabilities of Terminator armor, because while I do think the armor is bulky and restricts running, I don't see it as any less flexible or less articulated than power armor would be, and I think that the decendants of the Dark Angels would be pre-eminent swordsmen with all the possibly spinning, flourish-y movements that might entail. After all, their practice form involves a spiral shape, which indicates to me that they are well versed in being attacked and attacking from all angles, including even behind the back spins, and that would include in TDA to me.

 

The storm bolter will definitely get drilled out before paint is applied.

 

As far as the sword: because apparently the Space Marines hate sheathes! Seriously, there are only like three sheathed sword bits in the entire line, and one is brand new! :D

 

I like the new sword-spinning pose. It's very original.

I like the sword to the rear pose. Its different and I have not seen it before.

 

 

I would go for it. Then again I have a habit of doing the unconventional :)

Thanks guys, glad you like it. I definitely need to trim the wrist some, but that will probably come closer to it actually getting paint.

[Bryan Blaire]

I agree with Elmo the sword pose is a different step to the way that sword is commonly used and I think it looks really good.

 

Have you tried to change the helmets facing direction? I know I said something similar about changing the heads pose for the spear mini in your command squad but I find changing a helmets position can make the pose seem very different, this may collide with the storm bolter being in a raised aiming position so maybe adjust the bolter arm and change the heads position?

 

DR

D'oh! You were apparently responding as I typed! :) Thanks for the response, I really appreciate it!

 

I would change the helmet some, but I already trimmed it down on that side so it would fit against the "chapel arch" better. It would look funny the other way now. :( I think with the knee bent and pointed in the direction of the bolter, it at least looks like he is lunging that direction.

[Dragon Claw]

I really like the pose, as Cactus pointed out its definitely something you don't see around much. Originally when I first saw how he was holding the sword I imagined he was steadying it as if it was belted to him and he didn't want it tangling in his legs as he turned, which I also thought was a really cool idea if I'm honest and might end up using down the line. Perhaps to emphasize the movement you could add a tassel or relic chain to the pommel of the sword to convey the swing direction.

 

Have you had any thoughts on if you're going to do anything special with the base?